Karen Bass Dismisses Spencer Pratt Challenge as 6,800-Structure Fire Fallout Reshapes LA Race
Updated
Updated · Variety · May 27
Karen Bass Dismisses Spencer Pratt Challenge as 6,800-Structure Fire Fallout Reshapes LA Race
9 articles · Updated · Variety · May 27
Karen Bass said Spencer Pratt’s reality-TV fame does not qualify him to run Los Angeles, even as she privately acknowledged he is likely to reach a November runoff.
Pratt’s bid gained traction after the Jan. 7, 2025 Palisades fire destroyed about 6,800 structures, including his home, fueling a campaign centered on homelessness, disorder and anger at City Hall.
71% below the five-year average, reality-TV production has become another campaign flashpoint, with Pratt and Councilwoman Nithya Raman accusing Bass of failing to stop Hollywood jobs from leaving town.
Bass countered by touting film tax incentives, lower permit fees and a film czar, while signaling she would rather face Republican Pratt than fellow Democrat Raman in a city where Democrats outnumber Republicans nearly 4-to-1.
The race now tests Bass’s original promise to reduce homelessness without criminalizing it, as she says resistance from the left to clearing street encampments has been one of her biggest surprises in office.
Hollywood production is down 71%. Which candidate has the best plan to revive LA's signature industry?
After 2025's devastating fires, whose leadership can best prepare Los Angeles for future climate disasters?
With homelessness plans struggling, can a celebrity's radical approach succeed where politicians have not?